Case studies: Process development engineer: Jessica Harvey

Following her MEng in Chemical Engineering with Environmental Engineering at the University of Edinburgh, Jessica secured a place on Cadbury's graduate scheme...

I discovered in my first year of university that Cadbury recruited chemical engineers and was really taken with the idea of working in the consumer goods industry and helping create brands that so many people love. I was only just finding out about the roles and companies engineering graduates could end up working in, but since then it was always in the back of my mind to apply.

I applied for Cadbury’s Supply Chain Graduate Scheme in October of my final year at university. My application was successful; I graduated in June and started work at Cadbury’s Sheffield site on the newly integrated Kraft Foods Graduate Programme in September.

My current role draws heavily on my degree in chemical engineering. I am able to see first-hand how the principles taught at university apply in the day-to-day operation of the factory, especially in the project I am currently working on, installing new process equipment where the design and control theories I have studied are particularly relevant.

I am currently supporting a capital project to install a new cooker and associated equipment into an existing process making Wine Gums. I have organised a database of all the main plant items, process instrumentation and valves to be used in the final process and assisted with the modification of the current piping and instrumentation diagrams.

One of the most important aspects of a project like this is the development of the control system, which will be fundamental in the plant being able to run consistently and reliably after installation is completed. I am coordinating the creation of an accurate Functional Design Specification, a document that forms the basis of both the hardware and software design. I liaise with the project engineers and contractors to make sure every piece of equipment has been included and matches the user’s requirements.

My current role in Sheffield is counted as my technical placement; as an engineer on the supply chain graduate scheme I will undertake an engineering placement and a placement as a team leader. I also have the opportunity to explore other areas of the company outside of engineering, and with the integration of Cadbury and Kraft Foods, there is the potential for international opportunities and placements with other Kraft Foods brands.

One thing that I really like about my current role is that I get to work with people from a range of different disciplines so get a much broader overview of the production processes rather than just a process engineering viewpoint. There are very few process engineers on site so every now and again someone comes to ask my opinion on something as a chemical engineering graduate, which is a great confidence boost.

I think the great thing about the consumer goods industry is that you get to see the whole process from the initial ingredients through to the finished product on the shop shelves. The brands we make are instantly recognised and liked by so many people, and it will be really satisfying to see the first bags of Wine Gums out in the shops after the installation and commissioning of the equipment I’ve been working on.

I’d strongly recommend anyone wanting to work in engineering to get some relevant work experience while still at university. I undertook a six-month industrial placement with a leading pharmaceutical company in my final year and I think this definitely helped my application to the graduate scheme.

AGCAS

Written by AGCAS editors

Date: 

November 2010

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